When hairdresser Brittnee Watson first observed a black "blob" throughout her imaginative and prescient, she thought it was stray mascara which had dropped into her eye.
"I scrubbed my face for half an hour and I could not eliminate it," the 28-year-old stated.
Ms Watson, from Melbourne, rushed to an optician.
Nonetheless, the medic wasn't welcoming.
Ms Watson has kind one diabetes - which may result in imaginative and prescient loss.
In keeping with the Australian Bureau of Statistics, one in 20 Australians had diabetes in information recorded between 2020 and 2021.
Sort two was the most typical, representing 85.5 per cent of all instances, adopted by Sort one with 11 per cent.
The physician despatched her away.
"He stated, 'I am not going to waste my time till you begin taking care of your diabetes,'" she stated.
She went to hospital the place medical doctors and nurses have been kinder.
They informed her she had macular degeneration - which often impacts older individuals - and diabetic retinopathy.
"Macular degeneration is the deterioration of the central imaginative and prescient, so that is very outstanding in anyone over the age of 80," she stated.
"Diabetic retinopathy is when the blood vessels that type behind your eye as a result of there's not sufficient blood circulation burst."
And whereas Ms Watson was given therapy, her sight could not be saved.
Only a few months later, on Australia Day 2017, she awakened with no sight in any respect.
She was simply 22.
"It was loads quicker than what they thought," she stated.
The fast deterioration meant she he needed to cease driving, transfer dwelling, and quit her job in a salon.
She admits she "locked herself in the home" for per week.
Nonetheless, whereas that was robust, Ms Watson informed 9news.com.au her life is now completely optimistic.
She stated shedding her imaginative and prescient made her study to take care of her well being and quit her beforehand wild way of life.
Due to Imaginative and prescient Australian, she's discovered to make use of the array of kit now out there to assist individuals with imaginative and prescient loss.
She has seeing eye canine, Kuma, a job working for an allied well being service and has purchased an house along with her associate, Paul.
She does many of the issues different individuals her age do, resembling catching up with pals and visiting cafes - with the assistance of Kuma and Google Maps on her telephone.
She additionally hopes to begin taking part in blind Australian Guidelines soccer too.
"For me, it is really easy to have a look at the downsides, however if you happen to push by and take a look at the positives, imaginative and prescient loss is not a barrier, it is a velocity hump," she stated.
Now, Imaginative and prescient Australia has launched a marketing campaign to indicate individuals residing with blindness or low imaginative and prescient does not should be a barrier to full and energetic life.
The organisation says research have proven the variety of Aussies with no or low imaginative and prescient will attain greater than 500,000 by 2030.
At present 131,000 Aussies are partially or totally blind, in line with the Australian Institute of Well being and Welfare.
Karen Knight, common supervisor of consumer companies for Imaginative and prescient Australia, helps individuals address shedding their sight.
"We join them with different individuals going by related experiences to hep them recognise there may be loads extra fulfilling life forward," Ms Knight stated.
"The most important far is of their isolation, that they will not have the ability to do the issues that they may earlier than.
"Folks actually do worry loneliness and might be lonely, till they study the talents from our mobility instructors."
Contact journalist Sarah Swain: sswain@9.com.au